FLUSHING, N.Y. –
Junior Hanna Mar advanced to the round of 16 on Thursday after winning her
first round match in the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships at the Billie
Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y. Mar advanced after cruising
past No. 89 Aleksandra Josifoska of UNLV, 6-3, 6-1, and now owns a 12-2 record
this fall including a 4-1 slate against ranked opponents.

“She went out and executed the things we have been working on,”
said assistant coach Marc Spicijaric. “She got a good start, and I think that
really helped with her momentum, and I think she can really make a good run if
she continues to go out and execute the things we have been practicing like
moving forward, hitting targets, and those types of things.”

In the first set, Mar traded games with Josifoska before taking
the edge at 4-3. Mar continued her aggressive style of play, and after breaking
serve, took the first set 6-3. In the second set, Mar jumped out to an early
lead and cruised to a 6-1 win.

“I played well. I am definitely happy with how I played today,”
said Mar. “I came out and had a pretty good start which is always helpful. I
played my game really well, and did not let her take me out of what I needed to
do. I tried to be aggressive and get to the net when I could, and it worked
out.”

The USTA/ITA National
Indoor Championship is one of the premier collegiate tournaments of the year,
featuring seven of the top 10 players from the Campbell/ITA Women’s Preseason
rankings. Of the 32 athletes in the tournament, 27 are ranked in the top 100 in
the preseason poll, including Mar who is ranked 35th entering the
weekend.

On Friday, Mar is slated to face No. 41 Katie Le of Santa
Clara in the round of 16, after Le defeated No. 26 Zoe De Bruycker of North
Carolina, 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round. For live updates, visit the tournament home page or follow the tournament on twitter (@ITATennis).